Tag: kids

As a child, I remember hearing the phrase, “You don’t get something for nothing,” and I realized that in order to get something, I needed to earn it. Whether this was referring to earning grades, awards, or money, it was the same idea. You get from life what you put into it. I understood the concept that hard work would be rewarded and no one wins at everything. Hard work, dedication, and perseverance were keys to success.

The same concept seems to be neither taught nor understood by this current generation of children, the generation that includes my own children as well as the students I teach. I think this school year has been my most frustrating one out of the sixteen that I have been teaching. I don’t think I have ever had so many students angry with me because they did not receive an ‘A’ in my class for just being present in the room on a regular basis. The amount or quality of the “work” that they turned in or whether or not they actually turned in any work at all seemed to be of no consequence. They felt they should get a passing grade just because they came to class, just because they were nice, just because they got an ‘A’ on that one assignment that one time, etc.

It is extremely frustrating!

When did we start teaching kids that just because they are alive, the universe and all of the people in it owe them something? When did we start teaching kids that everyone is equal in talent and ability at everything? When did we start teaching kids that having a talent meant that they didn’t have to work hard because that talent would just carry them along to success?

I see it every day. Students who earn high test scores on standardized tests automatically seem to believe that their test scores entitle them to an ‘A’ in a class, that the mediocre work that they turn in to the teacher is acceptable and they don’t need to do any more than that. I see talented singers and dancers at the school who think that they don’t need to actually rehearse for a performance, that they can just get on stage and magic will happen. It’s in the struggling learner who feels that because everyone knows that it’s harder for them to learn, that they shouldn’t really have to work at all, that the teacher should just have sympathy as well as low expectations and gift them with a passing grade. (more…)